Do Autistic children and their families who are minority-language speakers experience barriers in accessing healthcare services? Is there a difference in the quality of the healthcare services they receive?
To help answer these questions, Autism Alliance of Canada has partnered with researchers from McGill University, Nipissing University, and Dalhousie University, caregivers, Autistic adults, clinicians, and community groups to lead a new research project examining barriers to healthcare for minority-language children on the autism spectrum and their families.
The aim of this project is to capture the lived experiences of people on the spectrum and their families through focus groups. These will include caregivers and autistic adults who are all minority-language speakers. Other stakeholders including clinicians, administrators, and community groups who work closely with people on the spectrum who are minority-language speakers will also take part.
If you are:
- An adult on the autism spectrum from a minority-language speaking family;
- A caregiver of a child on the autism spectrum and a minority-language speaker;
- A healthcare administrator who has knowledge of supports offered to children on the autism spectrum;
- A community organization working with children on the autism spectrum who are minority-language speakers; and/or,
- A clinician who works with children on the autism spectrum who are minority-language speaker,
We invite you to participate in this project to share your perspective. Contact us at language.research@autismalliance.ca.
Participants will be invited to join a focus group discussion to share their lived experiences around access to healthcare services for minority-language speakers on the autism spectrum, and possible solutions. The focus group discussion will be done either in-person or via Zoom. Breaks will be provided as needed.
The project’s findings will inform decision-makers about the barriers to accessing healthcare and help increase equity in the healthcare system between majority and minority-language speakers across Canada. For the purposes of this project, minority-language speakers are defined as someone who speaks a language other than the majority language in that area. As a cross-Canada initiative, what constitutes a minority-language speaker will differ based on the individual’s location.
